Paper or plastic may no longer be a question when grocery shopping. Many retailers are trading in paper and plastic bags because of environmental concerns. Each year, 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are used worldwide. This is more than 1 million per minute. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reported 380 billion plastic bags are used each year by Americans. About 1 billion plastic bags are thrown away and only 0.6 percent are recycled. Most plastic bags become litter contaminating soil and water. Hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, whales and other sea mammals die every year from mistaking the bags as food. Plastic bags can take up to 1,000 years to decompose in landfills. According to the National Cooperative Grocers Association, it takes 12 million barrels of oil to make a year’s worth of plastic bags and about 14 million trees are used annually to make paper bags for the United States. “For the environmentally conscious, deciding whether to use paper or plastic at a grocery store can make you feel like you’re caught between a paper mill and a petrochemical plant,” Robynn Shrader, chief executive officer for NCGA, said in a news release in January. “If at all possible, this environmental dilemma has a fairly easy solution – BYOB – ‘bring your own bag'” Whole Foods Market Inc. announced in January it plans to stop the use of plastic bags in all 270 stores worldwide by Earth Day, April 22. Whole Foods encourages customers to bring their own bags by offering a 5 cent refund for each bag. Recently, the company began selling their “Better Bag,” a reusable tote for only 99 cents made from recycled plastic bottles. Whole Foods also offers another environmentally-friendly option by providing 100 percent recycled paper grocery bags. Other giant retailers like Wal-Mart and Target are now joining the green movement. Wal-Mart recently began selling reusable totes for $1. The bag’s design is a black canvas tote with the phrase, “Paper or Plastic? Neither.” Each bag can hold up to the equivalent of two to three times of a regular plastic bag. “We just rolled them out in October,” said Kory Lundberg, Wal-Mart spokesperson. “They were well received, and customers were excited about it.” Lundberg said each reusable bag purchased will eliminate more than 50 bags within five years. The bags are made from 85 percent recycled bottles and may be recycled at the end of their life-spans. Lundberg said the company is working toward its goal to produce no waste. Wal-Mart is promoting the reusable bags by selling them by registers and putting information on their Web site. “It’s an option Wal-Mart has to be able to sell a bag for $1,” Lundberg said. “It’s a product that is sustainable and affordable.” Lundberg said Wal-Mart customers may also bring used plastic bags for recycling. Wal-Mart now offers recycling bins in the lobby by the door. “You can bring in plastic bags from any retailers,” Lundberg said. Target, Winn-Dixie and Albertson’s also accept clean, dry plastic bags for recycling.
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